We
reflect with the rest of the church on an excerpt of the discourse of Jesus on
the end of days. With our celebration of
Christ the King last Sunday, the anticipation of the glorious return of Christ,
the new liturgical year is ushered in by the same anticipation and
waiting. It is not by any means a passive waiting as Jesus himself exhorts
us to be vigilant. He asks us to stay
awake or alert for the coming of the Son of Man. His second coming is unknown to anyone except
the Father, but it is certain and will come as a surprise for many.
Jesus
uses the community’s knowledge of Noah and the people’s stance leading up to
the flood to drive home his message to be ready. They were living and going through
the cycle of life as if nothing will end it.
They were unprepared for the deluge and perished for it.
The
first Christians lived expecting the immediate return of Jesus. One by one, they passed on to the next life
and still the Lord has not come again. Two
thousand years after the death of Jesus Christ, we are faced with the same question
and concern. We hear of some predictions
about our world’s imminent end coming at a
particular day and time every year, fueled by fanatical groups and Hollywood movies. If
they were all true, the world would have ended with great frequency,
underlining the ridiculousness of the situation. Those who fearlessly proclaim the end even
claim that it is through their prayers and vigilance that the Lord has delayed
the second coming. But we have to remind
ourselves, the coming of false prophets is part of the signs. Together with the natural disasters we witness around the world, among which are the devastating typhoon Yolanda in the
Visayas, and the earthquake in Bohol and Cebu, we may ask, "Is the end near? Is Jesus Christ
coming back soon?"
No
one knows but the Father. It is God who determines
the hour. God’s time is not measured by any
human device like clocks and calendars. For God, a human
day can be equal to a thousand years, and a thousand human years can be equal to one
day (Ps 90; 2 Pt 3, 8). God’s time is
outside our time. Human beings
cannot meddle in God’s time, but we should be ready for the moment in which
God’s hour becomes present in our time at a point he so chooses. It can be today, it can a thousand or a
million years from now.What will give us peace of mind and security is not the knowledge the coming end, but the recognition of that Jesus is actually always coming into our lives at each moment. He comes to us through the people around us, through our relationships, through the events happening in our lives. All of these becomes part of our celebration of the Eucharist everyday or every Sunday. A seamless celebration of the presence of God is the best way to stay awake!

Lord Jesus, we believe that your coming is certain. Help us recognize your presence in all people and events. Help us to share your presence with one another that as a community we may begin to live your life and mission, to stay awake for your glorious coming. Amen.